Mind Games
by Hereward the White
Summary: Gadget Hackwrench has to deal with illogical scenarios now as she discovers something about herself that is far beyond logic. A must for Gadgephiles I think. R&R please! Note: I changed the story to a suggestion made by a reader. Discontinued.
1. The Awakening

The Rangers ran through the alleyways, desperate to stop Rat Capone making off with what was, in mouse terms, a barrowfull of gold coins. He had made good headway but the Rangers were unflappable, they continued the chase; over crates, through holes in walls (no, not cash machines) and across barren soil that had seen too many footprints in the past, but now found too few. Eventually the had him cornered in a more substantial alleyway behind a rather classy restaurant.

"Okay Capone," Chip called down the alley, "There's no way out! Drop the loot and come out with your hands up!" There was a slight pause before he replied.

"You Rangers are foolish! Let meshow you what I managed to fix up in here." He came out of the shadows, his burly sidekick carried the mouse-sized wheelbarrow of gold while Rat had some kind of rifle in his paws (by mouse standards). The Rangers hesitated for a while before Chip declared.

"You can't get away by threatening us, Rat Capone! Give up now and we'll say no more about it." His efforts to verbally rehabilitate the Ratia boss amounted to nothing, Rat pointed the rifle at Chip and pulled the trigger. Chip had only just managed to dodge the electronic surge but Gadget was right behind him and bore the full brunt of the blast, she fell over backwards blacking out, Chip looked at her inert body, then back at Rat who stood there in shock, then he turned to Monterey Jack and nodded with an expression of suppressed anger. The musclemouse nodded with the same expression and lunged at Capone, who dropped the electro-gun as Monterey reached for his throat, making it difficult for Rat to instruct his subordinate, Arnold Mouseneggar, to make a counter move. Dale dealt with this dim-witted wrestler by tossing a pebble at his head, causing Mouseneggar to drop the loot and run off, crying. Chip cradled Gadget's still inert form, checking for life signs, he was relieved to find a steady pulse but was concerned for the lack of noticeable breathing.

"And as a last gesture," Monterey growled at Capone, "For what you did to our li'l sheila..." He then lifted the criminal rodent over his head and tossed him over the wall, after which he rushed to Gadget's side along with Dale, who was already patting her forepaw. "I she...?" He asked the chipmunks, Chip looked up and shook his head.

"She's unconscious." He told them. "We ought to get her back to HQ." Monty then took the initiative and lifted the wheelbarrow that Capone and Mouseneggar had left behind. "Are you sure she'll be alright, lying on top of all that gold?"

"Well," Monty replied, "The police station ain't far from here; if we unload this loot there then there'll be plenty of room for Gadget on the way home." Just then there was a feminine groan, Gadget was beginning to stir. Chip and Dale bent over her again to make sure she was alright and then they lifted her up and on to the barrow.

By the time they had emptied the original contents of the wheelbarrow onto Spinelli's desk Gadget had come to, Chip was looking after her at the time.

"Are you alright?" He asked her. 'Oh, my dear Gadget,' He thought, 'I couldn't bear to lose you. We all love you dearly.'

"I'm alright." Gadget answered. "Golly, I didn't realise you felt so deeply about me." She compassionately took Chip's paw in hers, a look of bewilderment spread across Chip's face.

'How did you know, then?' He thought, 'I didn't say anything.'

"I thought you did." Gadget stated. "I heard you. But, for some reason, your voice echoed a bit, and you said it without moving your lips." Chip's eyes widened in surprise at what she had just said. "That's strange." She added. "It almost sounded like it was inside my head."

'Ah,' Monterey thought, 'Good old Gadget's up and about again! That was one terrible zap you got from that wretched Capone.' Gadget turned to him.

"Golly," She exclaimed, "It was so fast, wasn't it. Did he get away?!?" Chip shook his head and answered.

"No, we got him." 'Thanks to Monterey's fighting skills in particular.' He added in his thoughts.

"You mean...?" Gadget inquired, then Monty thought back to the scuffle. "Oh, Monty." She said. "Surely you didn't have to go so far." Now they were all stunned, none of them could understand why Gadget was referring to things they hadn't said or why she could remember the fight when she was unconscious throughout. Gadget started to become disturbed as she heard their voices in her head simultaneously, she focused on one fo their voices that seemed to be producing a theory. "Golly Dale, do you really think I'm...?" Dale looked straight at her and answered.

"Well, if you've heard my idea then you must be." Gadget now looked like she had gone straight through surprise and out the other end, into astonishment.

"But," She commented, "I can't see any reasonable explanation. I mean, it's never happened before." Chip frowned as he looked from Gadget to Dale and back.

'What are you talking about?' He thought, Gadget turned to him and said.

"Dale, would you care to deliver your theory to the others."

'What theory?' Zipper thought, Dale took a deep breath and said.

"Everyone, I think Gadget is... telepathic!" Chip, Monty and Zipper all gasped as their minds raced with whats, whens and hows.

"I can't think how electricity can cause this." Gadget stated. "It's almost as though that shock I got has stimulated something in my brain."

'But, you got hit in the chest.' Chip thought, he felt embarrassed as Gadget nodded to him. 'Don't dwell on it so much at once,' Chip deliberately kept this in thought, 'We should get back.'

"Okay guys," Gadget remarked, "Let's get back to Rescue Rangers HQ!" Dale and Monty nodded enthusiastically while Chip just nodded knowingly.

Curiously the Rangers spent that evening in much the same way as any other, Dale settled down to watch the TV while Monty started on their dinner as Chip and Zipper did some of the housework. Gadget was taking the revelation seriously and busied herself with analysing the workings of her telepathy, learning how it functions and how to control it, her head was filled with the echoing voices of the Rangers' thoughts as she aimed to suppress some and focus on others. Aside from her efforts to control her telepathy and the psychological impact from knowing that she could read their thoughts the evening went by as smoothly as always, it seemed so simple to them as Gadget was undoubtedly keep the most disturbing thoughts away from her own mind, any one that came through would be quickly suppressed in her own mind.

That night Gadget made notes on how to deal with this unusual power before she settled down and slept uneasily as she became unnerved with regards to what effect her subconcsious would have on her telepathy.

The next morning brought nothing new; no terrifying revelations, no chaos in any of the rooms and no trauma. Gadget immediately headed for her workshop in the hope of suppressing her telepathy by focusing her mind on what she'd always done with her mind, unaware that telepathy was just the tip of the iceberg, that there were more astonishing capabilities to follow. As she sketched and made notes something struck her, she considered what it meant to be telepathic.

'If I can hear what others are thinking,' She thought, 'Then maybe I can send my thoughts to the minds of others.' She made an attempt on this.

Dale lay awake in his bunk, not at all bothered to get up, when he heard something echo.

'Good morning, Dale.' Came Gadget's voice. 'Golly, you seem to be a heavy sleeper.' Dale looked around but could not see her at all.

'Where are you, Gadget?' He thought, bewildered by the fact that she was not in his and Chip's room. 'I'm not telepathic.' There was a mysterious but charming giggle before Gadget replied.

'I'm in the workshop. It seems I can broadcast my thoughts as well as receive those of others.' Dale jumped out of bed and thought aloud.

"Hey, neat." The rest came only in thought. 'How are you handling it?'

This last thought struck Gadget like a lightning bolt. "Golly." She exclaimed. 'I guess I've got it sussed!' She projected this thought to Dale.

By breakfast time Gadget and Dale had gotten over the shock but Chip and Monty were still unsure of this while Zipper felt rather nervous.

'Golly Chip,' Gadget thought, 'You don't have to worry anymore. I've got it under control.' Chip was astonished at hearing Gadget's voice in his head, Dale spotted his expression and said.

"She can put her thoughts in our heads as well as hear ours in her head." Gadget nodded and then telepathically commented.

'I have full control of this power and it will not activate without me intending to.' Then she spoke the rest. "I can assure you that I will not invade your privacy."

"Well," Monterey commented, "That'll come in useful on our missions. What d'you think, Chipper?" Chip cautiously thought at first, but Gadget's expression told him that she was not receiving his thoughts.

"It might give us some help, yes." He answered.


	2. Spreading your Thoughts

In the afternoon Gadget actually decided to take a break from inventing and maintaining her previous inventions, instead she got out a pocket book for computing (let's face it, a regular sized book would be too big for her to handle) as she had recently been considering the application of cybernetics to her engineering skills. She skimmed the first page and turned to the next, then the next, and the next! Suddenly she caught on to something, she closed her eyes and recited a piece from the first page.

"Computer hard drives comprise of a digital disc possessing anything up to 100 gigabytes of RAM, this enables your computer to store large amounts of information without stalling." She opened her eyes and looked onto that very line, she checked it in only a second. "Golly," She exclaimed, "It seems that I have a photographic memory now! I was quick to learn before, but I seem to be able to memorise an entire page in less than ten seconds." She considered the implications of this ability, it wasn't really anything to worry about after she gained control of her new telepathic powers. Then she heard a sigh in her mind, she was curious as to this as she hadn't made the intention to see what the other Rangers were thinking, she listened to this new tone.

'It's been so long; I do so love Chipper, but I can't stop thinking how he feels about me.' Gadget recognised the voice. 'I'm sure he won't mind me popping round today.'

'Tammy!' Gadget thought. 'I can read Tammy's mind! I wonder how far away she is.' She closed her eyes and concentrated until she found herself looking through Tammy's eyes.

'Ooh,' Tammy thought as she crossed the park, 'I've got this strange feeling that I'm being watched.' She looked around to see if any cat or something was stalking her, but she could neither see, hear or smell any dangerous life form. 'Must've been my imagination.'

'Don't panic, Tammy.' Gadget telepathically told her. 'I'm just checking how far away you are so I can have an idea what my power can do.' This stunned Tammy as she thought.

'Wait, what is this power Gadget is talking about.'

'Be careful,' Gadget told her, 'When you unwillingly hear my voice in your head try not to think of me in the third person. You see I got an electric shock yesterday that knocked me out and, ever since then, I seemed to have aquired telepathy.' Tammy was well and truly astonished by this.

'No!' She thought. 'You can speak with others entirely through thought?!?'

'Potentially.' Gadget replied. 'I prefer not to use it too much in case I catch something rather unnerving. Besides, it feels better to use the normal senses.' There was a pause before Gadget added. 'I think that Chip won't mind if you popped round. Do you want me to tell him you're coming or would you like to keep it a surprise?' Tammy now seriously thought about it while Gadget did her best to ignore the jumble of thoughts as Tammy made her mind up.

"You can drop a hint." She said aloud. 'I would like him to know I'm coming, but I don't know how he'll take it, and surprises can be enjoyable.'

'OK,' Gadget responded, 'You can have your thoughts to yourself now.'

"Gee," Tammy said aloud, "That was bizarre. Fancy Gadget being telepathic." She carried on her merry way.

Chip wasn't sure what Gadget meant when she said that he would soon see an old friend, but he put a brave face on it, until a flash of pink rushed through the door and he next found Tammy hanging from him.

"CHIPPER!" She cried out passionately as she embraced him.

"Tammy," He said meekly, "It's nice of you to pop round, but you don't need to through yourself on me." She realised what she was doing and released him.

"Sorry Chip," She apologised, "It's just been so long since I last saw you." Chip thought back to the last time they met.

"I was two weeks ago." He informed her, she nodded and said.

"But it feels like it's been years." Just then Monterey Jack peered round the doorway that led to the kitchen.

"Hello Tammy." He greeted her. "It's quite a surprise for you to call round. Will you stay for dinner?" Tammy looked at Chip, who was still getting over her sudden pounce and said.

"Sure, if Chipper doesn't mind." Chip composed himself and said.

"How many time must I tell you 'Don't call me Chipper!'?" Tammy looked at him with a hint of surprise upon her face. Just then an eerie feeling trembled down his back, he turned around to see Gadget coming from the hanger with her head buried in a book on computing. They were all slightly surprised to see her flick through the pages as though it was a comic.

"Hello Tammy." She said without looking up, the excitable squirrel nodded calmly and returned the greeting.

"Hello Gadget. Are you okay? You seem to be rushing through that book of yours." Gadget now looked up, sensing the discomfort on her part in all three of them.

"Don't worry, guys." She commented. "I also seem to have acquired a photographic memory; I can read elaborate detail on a page in a book in less than a minute." They were all amazed by this discovery, Chip turned to Tammy.

"This may come as a shock to you..." He began, but she cut him off.

"If it's about what happened to Gadget, I know." Chip and Monty were stunned by hearing this, but Gadget filled them in on the details.

"Crikey!" Monty exclaimed. "How far away can you read a mind, Gadget-luv?!?" Gadget shrugged and said.

"I'm not sure, my telepathy seems to have a constantly extending radius. I can get an idea by focusing on two or three different minds consecutively, but I can't be certain." Chip stratched his head in bewilderment about this. "Sorry if I interrupted anything," She continued, "But your arrival, Tammy, seems to have caused a surge in brainwaves. I don't wish to pry, so it was fortunate that I was finishing this book at the time, otherwise I might've heard every thought from this room." Chip now became very conscious of the situation and was sure that Gadget's change of attention would enable her to clearly read his mind.

'Looks like you still need a bit of practice.' He thought firmly, ensuring that Gadget would pick this up. Confirmation was made when Gadget nodded in his direction.

"Gosh," Dale exclaimed at dinner, "I think you've got a whole new future, Gadget!" Gadget was surprised at this and beacme curious as to what Dale had on his mind, she was sure that there would be nothing too serious in there at the time.

"Golly Dale," She replied, "I'm sure that won't happen to me." Dale was shocked at this, but soon calmed down.

'Gadget,' He thought, 'I'm looking more at the powers and less at the behaviour.' Then Gadget nodded in understanding.

'Another sci-fi movie?' She inquired telepathically, he smiled and thought.

'You know, Gadget. Don't bother asking about what you can already see.'

"Gadget," Tammy asked as she helped herself to some of Monty's cheese surprise, "Are you able to know everything someone thinks?" Gadget thought for a while and answered.

"Potentially, I prefer to leave some thoughts alone in case they bring out anything too disturbing." That pretty much covered the dinner conversation, as she tucked into the cheese surprise Gadget decided to see how far her telepathic power had reached. She concentrated on something beyond the tree, beyond the park, right across New York. But all she could get were her own memories, she identified this as meaning that she couldn't stretch her mind that far so she tried something nearer. 'Ah-ha,' She thought, 'This could save Chip time and trouble.' She listened to the thoughts of a few humans as she ate, focusing only on work-related thoughts.


	3. Out of this World

"No thanks, Gadget," Chip told her after dinner, "I prefer to go down there and do it myself."

"Okay Chip," She replied, "I just thought that I could save you the trouble if I tapped into the mental state of the police to see if anything cropped up." Chip nodded, but he enjoyed his vigils at the police station and felt that Gadget might lose concentration on her work if she was listening to the minds of the police, which could cause a serious injury.

About half an hour later they had all taken to relaxing in the living room; Dale was watching another 1950s B-movie, Chip was flicking through a mystery magazine, Monterey was just reclining in a pin-cushion substituting for a bean bag, Tammy was moonlighting over Chip, Zipper was relaxing much the same way as his long-time friend and Gadget had taken to meditating in one corner to try and fully master her new mental capability. They were all absorbed in whatever they were doing when a revelation hit Zipper like a concentrated beam of sunlight through a magnifying glass, he buzzed in Monterey Jack's ear, bringing him back to reality.

"That's a good point, Zipper me-lad." He replied as he turned to the others. "Hey guys, how come Gadget's now got this new fangled telepathy when she's hardly shown any mental powers beyond her blindingly-astounding intellect?" This was something that struck Chip and Tammy very hard; Gadget caught on to this and began to think why she could read thoughts now. Dale immediately put them at ease.

"It's easy," He told them, "She's had ESP in her all her life, but it's hardly shown itself, what you might call dormant. The electric shocks must've awakened it, that one she got from Rat was the strongest yet by the looks of it. I've seen it in one of the earliest episodes of 'Space Hike'!"

"Why didn't I catch on to that part before?" Gadget muttered as she temporarily left her meditation, probing Dale's mind for more information about what he had watched. "Golly," She exclaimed, rising from her seated position in the corner of the room, "Wouldn't that mean…?" Dale nodded.

"You might even be able to make things move by thought!" Everyone else in the room looked at Gadget with amazement and awe.

"Crikey," Monty exclaimed, "Gadget-luv being telekinetic!?! That'd really make a blinder of a life for yer, Gadget!" Gadget nodded and said.

"I'm going to have to meditate all the more. Unless I can fully master these powers and retain my personality then I'll be more of a danger than a help!" Chip understood this very clearly, he was rather nervous about Gadget's subconscious running wild while she slept, he did not want sharp object's flying around every time she got some shut-eye.

"Is there anything we can do to help you?" He asked her, Gadget thought for a while before shaking her head and answering.

"Just be yourselves guys, I will train by myself. By going on as you've always done, you can be more help to me mastering my mental abilities than if you tried to moderate your thought patterns, that would simply make things to easy and you'd be in danger if any of you unwittingly lost control of your thoughts and emotions." There was a pause and she added. "I must be ready for whatever turbulence I might detect in an individual's brainwaves."

Tammy didn't stay long; she knew her mother would worry if she was away too long and said goodbye sometime between 19:00 and 20:00 EST.

The next few days passed by pretty smoothly, the criminal element did not pass beyond the efforts of police resources and Gadget was quickly getting the hang of her telepathy. She usually spent the most of the in her workshop as she had always done in the past, but she made sure to spend the evenings in meditation.

Then there was an occasion when an unknown fox had been spotted looting the homes of elderly ladies, the Rangers were quick to act and found tracing him easy thanks to Gadget's new telepathy. The actual confrontation was known to have been difficult, fortunately Gadget had brought some gear to help them deal with the more understandable side of what this fox was likely to throw at them. However this was one wily fox and, had it not been for Gadget's telepathy, the Rangers might've actually failed on this one; fortunately the laws of narrative always find a way for them to succeed.

The Rangers staggered through the front door of their headquarters, exhausted by the struggle against the rogue fox and then going round returning the hooky to it's rightful owners. Something was disturbing Chip, Gadget showed no signs of exhaustion; in fact she looked just as perky as when they usually completed a typical mission.

"That was a blinder of a mission, mates." Monterey commented. "How about we hit the sack?" Chip and Dale were certainly ready to get some shut-eye and Zipper was about to give up flying for the night, but Gadget spoke up.

"Golly Monty, it's only eight-thirty." In response to this surprisingly alert comment Chip pointed out to her what everyone else was feeling.

"Gadget," He told her, "We're all exhausted after that escapade! Are you telling us that, after all the effort you've put into this mission, you're not even a bit tired?!?" Gadget looked at the others, it didn't take a psychic to tell that they were more out of it than Newton was when he did one mercury experiment too many, she was rather surprised that they were so tired when she felt so up-and-atom.

"Okay guys," She said, "You can all call it a night. I'll just meditate for a while; it might make me more restful." And with that they all split up and went to their bedrooms.

Gadget actually spent much longer meditating than she had originally supposed, it wasn't until 22:10 that she stopped. Furthermore she then went to her workshop to try a few small modifications to a device here and there. It wasn't until 00:30 that she went to bed; the sight of the digital watch in her room astonished her.

'Golly,' She thought, 'I'll probably be sleeping longer even than Dale!' She knew how soundly the red-nosed chipmunk could sleep and how much he enjoyed activities that used very little energy.

The next morning brought a new surprise; Gadget was actually the first up, even though she was the last to bed.

"Crikey luv," Monty declared as he found Gadget making the breakfast this time, "What time did yer get up?!?" Gadget turned round, noting the sensation of surprise and bewilderment emitting from him, and said.

"I was rather surprised myself, it was only twenty-to-six when I woke up and I felt completely refreshed. I only got up ten minutes later, once I was sure that it wasn't a brief awakening." Monty blinked and his mind began to churn with theories to account for this event. "Golly Monty," She commented as she caught on to his line of thought, "It could be that my sleep requirements have, somehow, declined over the past week!"

Breakfast was truly something to remember, for it had neither the cheese as was standard for Rescue Ranger culinary practice nor the tang of motor oil that usually accompanied Gadget's cooking as she had a thorough shower after she got up.

"Gosh," Dale exclaimed upon hearing the news from Gadget and Monterey, "How long have you actually slept, Gadget?" There was a pause before she answered.

"Gee, I suppose it was approximately five hours!" Chip hesitated as Gadget tended to sleep less than the rest of them anyway. "I've had a sleep pattern covering a period of approximately six hours before all this started." She added as Chip's concentration made his thoughts clear as day to her.

All the Rangers were quite sure now; Gadget was developing something new, something beyond the logic to which she held so dear, something that would take her to a whole knew level of life-kind. But what they didn't and couldn't know was exactly how high she would reach.


	4. Haunting a Heist

Gadget's psychic powers were constantly growing, every day she found that the limits in her powers had risen; fortunately she was doing everything she could to keep full control of these abilities. Day after day her mind became a more and more powerful tool; she did as much as she could to ensure that these abilities would aid the Rescue Rangers and those whom they helped.

Two weeks since this whole palaver started a new problem cropped up for the Rescue Rangers to deal with.

"This house was burgled last night," Stan Blather announced on the news, "The crooks got away with eight pounds of jewels and there were no fingerprints to identify. It also seems that there has been little evidence of a real break in."

"Crikey!" Monterey exclaimed as he heard the news. "Eight pounds and no evidence!" Chip nodded knowingly.

"Looks like an animal criminal to me!" He commented, the Rangers were unanimous in that opinion. "Let's get down to the station!" He told them, while three of the Rangers were ready to do so Gadget hesitated.

'Would you like me to come, too?' She mentally asked him, Chip shook his head.

'That'd be too easy,' He thought, 'I'd like to do it the traditional way.' Gadget nodded in understanding and wished them luck while she busied herself in the workshop. Zipper made a trumpeting noise and the other three Rangers announced.

"Rescue Rangers away!" And they dashed out towards the police station.

"Spinelli," Kirby stated as he and Muldoon approached the sergeant's desk, "We've had look round for clues to this robbery, but all we could find were these." They placed some sheets of paper on his desk with paw prints on each one.

"Animal prints?" He commented in a rhetorical tone.

"Afraid so, sergeant." Kirby continued. "I don't know why there are all these prints and no fingerprints." Spinelli turned at a right-angle and said.

"Oh, hey, great," He commented, "Officers Muldoon and Kirby attend the scene of the crime and find animal paw-prints!"

"Maybe it was a cat-burglar." Muldoon volunteered.

"Oh, yeah," Spinelli replied, "Very funny, Muldoon."

"Of course," Chip commented as he earwigged on their conversation, "It could be…" Dale shrugged his shoulders in Chip's direction and said.

"How can we be sure?" Chip thought for a while and answered.

"If we can see the sort of paw-prints they are then we can determine whether he is responsible." Just as Chip started to think about how to get a few samples from the piles on the desk Spinelli opened his drawer and took out some foodstuffs to make himself a sandwich. A mustard-yellow trail floated up to the fan and right in front of Monterey Jack's face, causing him to suddenly go narcotic and that can only mean…

"Cheeeeesssse!" He moaned as he found himself being drawn towards the source of the smell.

"Monty, no!" Both Chip and Dale declared in unison, but he was too far out of it. Once again he leapt down from the fan and dashed for the desk.

Spinelli had just finished making his sandwich when the telephone rang, he babbled on into the phone while Monterey Jack dashed across the desk and grabbed the cheese from his sandwich.

Chip and Dale got to him just in time as Spinelli replaced the receiver and picked up his sandwich, they hauled Monterey out of sight and snagged a few prints while Spinelli pondered with annoyance as to what happened to the cheese in his sandwich.

"They look promising," Chip commented as he somehow tucked them away under his jacket, "Let's get back to HQ!" And they all dashed away from the desk.

Gadget greeted them the minute they entered through the door.

"Hey guys," She said, "Did anything turn up?" Chip nodded and pulled out the prints to show everyone, of course Dale got side-tracked.

"How are you getting on, Gadget?" He asked her, Chip felt annoyance and Gadget was aware of it, so she decided to try and make it quick.

"Well," She began, "My telepathy range seems to match the city limits now, and last night I only slept just over three hours." The Rangers all gasped at that and Monty made a comment.

"You seem to be eating less as well, lass." She nodded and said.

"You noticed, I seem to be eating only a fifth of what I used to at mealtimes."

"And no snacks either." Dale commented, Chip quietly groaned at the dithering.

"I also seem to have increased strength and stamina." Gadget added weakly, not sure what to make of this last factor.

"Sounds promising," Dale commented, "It might be the first sign of tele-whatchamacallit."

'Telekinesis.' She mentally told him. "Interesting thought." Dale blushed, taking that last comment literally. "What's the news, Chip?" She asked, he was glad that she got back on track and leaned over the prints while the other Rangers gathered around him.

"I have a hunch," He told them, "But I'm not sure. These prints are in the right category, but I can't be certain." Gadget studied the prints and then took a quick telepathic glance at Chip and said.

"He's nearly always trying to steal precious jewels and, sometimes, money. Just a moment." She shut her eyes and concentrated on one particular building in her mind, she could hear his words as they passed through his mind towards his mouth.

"Ahh, my dear little jewels," Fat Cat murmured as he pawed the hooky on his desk, "If only you knew what I went through for you." The lift doors opened and his three stooges trotted in with a full sack between them.

"Here you go, boss." Mepps groaned as he took some of the weight.

"You'll love the stuff we've just swiped." Wart commented as they emptied the sack onto the desk, pouring more loot all over it.

"Hmm," Fat Cat pondered, "Nice work, guys." He then stood face to faces with them. "I hadn't finished counting the previous stock, you fools!" He yelled at them.

"Uh," Mole spoke up, "How can you make gravy from jewels, Fat Cat?" He now found himself at Fat Cat's side.

"My dear Mole," He replied, "It's not that sort of stock! I'm referring to the fact that I wasn't through with the jewels you previously brought me!" He then stood up straight and paced around the room. "The next time you bring me more jewels and there's still some on my desk, leave the sack next to my desk!"

"Can we go now, Mr. Fat?" Mepps asked, Fat Cat gave them all a hard stare and answered.

"Yes, get out of my sight and leave me to my jewels." They waltzed towards the lift. "Oh and…" He let the sentence hang for a bit while they stopped and turned, "Keep an eye out for those Rescue rodents; they're bound to take an interest in my business." And they finally completed their walk to the lift and left Fat Cat with his one true love outside of food, wealth.

"Spot on, Chip." Gadget announced, the Rangers were all in suspense as she stood there with her eyes shut, awaiting her verdict. "He's got his cronies pilfering the wealthy again." Chip nodded and said.

"Well then, we'd better pay him a…"

"Wait Chip!" Gadget cried out, they were all surprised by this outburst. "He's expecting us to investigate! Give me a minute and I'll see where and when the best time for jewel recovery will be." Chip nodded and led the rest of the Rangers into the kitchen to rustle up something while Gadget retired to her bedroom to probe a few minds.

The Rangers decided to call it a night by the time Gadget was finished and made this case a top priority for the next morning, Chip was very confident in handling this case as he was used to Fat Cat and his gang in spite of the dramatic life-threatening scenarios he kept bringing up.

That very same evening Fat Cat was suspicious as to the cultural tastes of his cronies, thinking that proper literature might make them more sensible, so he decided to pay their sleeping quarters a little visit before they settled down.

"Ah, my dear henchmen," He greeted them as he walked through the doorway, "I just thought I'd drop by." Mepps looked rather nervous and asked.

"Do you want to see anything, Mr. Fat?" Fat Cat frowned and said.

"Yes, I do, actually. Would you mind getting the books you're reading at the moment and putting them down here?" Mepps, Snout and Wart complied while Mole just stood there staring at Fat Cat who told him. "I mean get what you're going to read tonight and put it on that table!" Mole finally did so. "Mepps, how do you feel?" He asked.

"Dreary, Mr. Fat." Mepps answered.

"Oh, dreary. How sad, never mind!" He then picked up the pile of books and looked at them one by one. "'Useless, by James Joyce'." He read. "Who's reading this?"

"That's mine, Mr. Fat." Mepps answered.

"Useless just about sums you up!" Fat Cat told him.

"Mr. Fat," Mepps meekly commented, "It's called 'Ulysses, by James Joyce'. It's a thrilling adventure about this guy in a…" He didn't get to finish.

"I know what it's all about, professor!" Fat Cat told him. "'Usylles, by James Joyce'. He was character from Greek myth…, Greek myth…, I'm just glad someone here's sophisticated enough to read the classics!" He carried on checking the books. "'The Adventures of Colombo'. Who's reading this?" Fat Cat asked, slightly bewildered.

"I'm reading that, boss!" Wart answered.

"'2001: A Space Odyssey'. Who's is this?" Fat Cat growled.

"That's mine, sir." Snout nervously replied.

"'Winnie the Pooh'! I wonder who's reading this." Fat Cat commented sarcastically.

"I've been reading that, Fat Cat." Mole said.

"You dopey little oaf!" Fat Cat growled at him. "I'm going to see if there's anything that might get you gimps a few brain cells!" He then put the books back on the table and strutted out of the room.

09:00 hours, the Rescue Rangers were piling into the Rangerplane all announcing in unison.

"Rescue Rangers away!" And then Gadget got the Rangerplane in flight, setting it on a course with the cat food factory with the 'Cheshire cat' statue on the roof.

Their approach was stealthy and well-planned, Gadget had identified exactly where Fat Cat's cronies were keeping a watch and had identified a blind spot, they just had to make a distraction first.

Mepps and Wart slouched at the side to the entrance of Fat Cat's casino; Wart was looking all around, mostly at the sky, while Mepps was about ready to go to sleep.

"Wake up!" Wart told his associate with a nudge. "Those Rescue Rangers are crafty and devious, drop your guard for one minute and they slip by."

"Oh," Mepps groaned, "This is so boring!" But he did his best at keeping an eye out, which mainly consisted of him leaning over a piece of the statue staring at a corner beyond.

Snout and Mole were on top of the statue's head, making sure the Rangers would not enter by the windows to Fat Cat's office, although Snout was the one doing the looking out.

"Err, what are we looking for again?" Mole asked as he squinted into the nearby.

"Rescue Rangers, Mole." Snout replied. "Fat Cat is tired of them interfering with his business. We are to give them no quarter!"

"Err," Mole muttered as he went through his pockets, "I haven't got any chance on me anyway." Snout just groaned and looked out over the city, unaware of the small aircraft coming into landing on the back of the cat statue.

"Okay," Gadget whispered as the Rangers disembarked, "We should have no trouble distracting Mole, but we need to prevent Snout from catching us."

"If we flick a few stones here and there," Monterey Jack whispered, "We can distract them for a short while." Chip nodded and added.

"Perhaps if we get them back to back we can pull their hats down over their eyes, then they'll blame each other once they get out of it."

'Which should take Mole a long time.' Dale thought, to which Gadget smiled and nodded in agreement. Dale then snooped around for some stones while Gadget made sure that Snout would not look back, not caring if Mole did or not.

A few clipping sounds made Snout and Mole rather edgy as they stood at the ready, back to back in case any do-gooders tried to come at them from behind. Zipper went in first from Mole's side, who's eyesight was poor enough to let Zipper come fairly close before flying over the odd couple and coming down on top of Mole's head.

"Excuse me." Snout commented upon hearing a brief buzz, then Zipper hauled at Mole's hat putting him out for the count. While Mole walked around in a blind stupor Monterey sneaked up to help Zipper with Snout's hat, who desperately tried to take it off while most of the Rescue Rangers quickly dashed across to reach the windows of Fat Cat's office. Gadget got the Rangerplane out of sight first and clambered up to the windows just as Snout and Mole got their hats off.

"Hey," Snout yelled at Mole, "What are you trying to pull?!?" Mole stood there, stupefied and said.

"Me?!? What did I do? You put the light out!"

"Oh yeah," Snout commented, "Like I'd play silly games like this when there's work to be done." They continued to argue while the Rangers now faced the new problem of shifting all the jewels in Fat Cat's office off to the police station.

Fat Cat wandered out of his casino to check up on his cronies, he placed his paws on Mepps' and Wart's shoulders, causing them to jump slightly.

"Any sign of those Rescue rodents?" He asked them.

"No, Mr. Fat." Mepps answered.

"Not a sign of them, boss." Wart added, Fat Cat snorted and said.

"Don't drop your guard, once they get a sniff of my activities they won't let go until they've spoilt them." He went back inside.

"I've got it!" Gadget declared, catching the attention of the Rangers. "If we hook a line to the cat's face we can tug open it's mouth and all the jewels will come pouring out!" There was a hesitation and Chip said.

"It works alright with an armoured helicopter, but the Rangerplane doesn't have the lifting power." Gadget thought and said.

"A few tweaks here and there should get it done."

"Oh dear." Dale commented.

"Is it that serious?" Gadget asked him.

"Well, every time you say 'should'…" Dale told her, but she cut him off.

"I'm already aware of that opinion." She tapped the side of her head, giving indication as to how she was aware. "I was wondering if it affects all cases."

Fat Cat walked up to the roof to find Snout and Mole still arguing.

"You fools!" He barked. "We've got to keep our eyes open for those Rescue Rangers. We have no time for domestic squabbles!" Snout and Mole pointed at each other and said.

"He started it!" Fat Cat was not amused.

"Started what?" He asked.

"Pulled the wool over my eyes!" Snout told him, pointing to his hat.

"Uh-uh." Mole commented. "He put the light out with a tea cosy." Fat Cat looked at each other and their hats and it dawned on him, a pained look spread across his face.

"Come with me!" He told them.

Some time later, Fat Cat leaped out of his casino entrance and grabbed Wart and Mepps.

"Come with me, quickly!" He told them.

"Well," Gadget commented after hearing the Rangers give their opinions as to how dangerous her use of the word 'should' was, "I suppose it's all a question of trial and error. After all, we've never had a case we couldn't handle."

Only seconds later, practically on cue, Fat Cat and his cronies waltzed in, catching the Rangers' attention morbidly.

"Well, well, well," He commented, "What have we here?"

"Here we go again." Dale muttered.

"If you think you can spoil my latest scheme, you've got another thing coming." Fat Cat continued, followed by diabolical laughter. "Right," He informed his cronies, "Mole, the rack!" This unnerved the Rangers until Mole pulled out a dish rack (the sort you get on draining boards); Fat Cat averted his eyes in pained disbelief. "You…" He growled at Mole but then gave up. "OK, tie them down." His cronies tied all five Rangers to the rack after it was placed on the floor, Zipper was tough to tie down due to his size but the villain usually finds a way. "What do you say now?" He asked the Rangers.

"Do your worst, Fat Cat!" Chip declared defiantly, Fat Cat grunted and said.

"Right. Mepps, give the rack… (Oh dear.) …Give the rack a turn." Mepps looked at the rack and turned to Fat Cat. "I know," He whispered to his dogsbody, "I know you can't! I didn't want to say anything. I just tried to ignore Mole's daft mistake. He's just so unbelievably stupid!"

"Should I, err…?" Mepps started to ask.

"Oh, just pretend, for Pete's sake!" Fat Cat yelled at him, so Mepps laughed diabolically for a few seconds and then made a turning motion next to the rack like he was using a traditional tin opener.

After ten minutes everyone was starting to get bored, the Rangers were tired of being tied down with nothing happening, Fat Cat was bored from the lack of sadistic satisfaction, even Mepps was bored with standing there pretending to turn the rack. Gadget looked around for inspiration as to how to get out of this situation, anyone would think that Fat Cat was trying to bore them to death, her eyes fell upon a nail about 5 feet away, she thought about how useful it could be if she could reach it. After about half a minute she saw the nail begin to move, it levitated about three inches off the floor, turned in her direction and flew through the air, slicing through the binds of the Rangers. Stunned by what happened Gadget dropped her focus on the nail, which fell back to the floor distracting Fat Cat and his gang.

"What was that?!?" Fat Cat declared as he looked around for anyone who might provide backup for the Rescue Rangers. Meanwhile Chip and Monty were looking the other way to see anyone who might've thrown that nail so effectively, but Dale was looking at Gadget who was only just piecing together what had happened.

"Golly!" She exclaimed, but that caught Fat Cat's attention again.

"Seize them!" He told his cronies, Chip and Dale were distressed as to how to get out of this while Zipper flew out of reach and Monterey Jack stood at the ready for a fight. As Wart and Snout reached for Chip and Dale they felt themselves being pulled back, out of reach of the crawlers before softly landing at a windowsill, feet first. Monterey knocked Mole out of the way but didn't get a chance to tackle Mepps, who found himself flung into the lift, which seemed to open on it's own accord, a few nails chased Fat Cat in there too, before they were sent down to the lowest level.

Wart and Snout now reached for Gadget, but she dealt with them easily.

'Wart,' A spooky voice resounded in his head, 'Snout is a traitor. He wants the casino for himself, you must deal with him and Fat Cat will reward you well.' He turned to Snout with a suspicious look in his eye.

'Snout,' The same voice called, 'Wart hates you for receiving Fat Cat's approval.' He looked at Wart with the same suspicious glint. Forgetting the super-intelligent Rescue Ranger, they pounced on each other. Meanwhile Monty and Gadget climbed up onto the windowsill and Zipper flew down to rendezvous with the others, Gadget appeared to be worn out.

"Next time something new crops up," She puffed, "I must remember to start small." Chip and Monterrey blinked at her while Zipper shrugged his shoulders and Dale just smirked in understanding.

"You did all this?" Chip queried, Gadget nodded and added.

"It's only just developed; telekinesis is exhausting at the moment." She took up her thinking posture, having been worn out by the confrontation she considers a way of getting the jewels out of Fat Cat's office without resorting to telekinesis. "I've got it!" She declared barely half a minute later.

"We know that already." Dale commented.

"No Dale," She remarked, "If I hook up a line between the Rangerplane and the statue's nose we can haul the mouth open. Although, we should have the Rangerwing for extra lifting power." At hearing that Monterrey Jack commented.

"In that case we'll just use the Rangerplane."

The Rangerplane strained on it's tow-rope, Gadget put in all that was possible to give the 'plane more lift. The struggle got tougher and tougher, but eventually the cat's mouth opened and not only the jewels, but Wart, Snout and Fat Cat fell out, once again Fat Cat landed in the water.

"If he thinks he'll ever succeed in crime," Dale commented, "He's all wet!" And sniggered to himself. Gadget pulled in the tow-rope and set the Rangerplane on course for home.


	5. And Now, a Skit!

_I make apologies to Gainsborough Pictures Ltd. For use of their idea in 'Ask a Policeman'._

The next day was very peaceful for the Rangers; Monterrey Jack was busy with the cooking, Dale was on the sofa searching for a good sci-fi movie and Gadget was busy in her workshop, taking breaks to maintain her mental discipline over her newfound powers.

Chip kept himself occupied by reading a few mystery novels, but kept his ear to the ground in case anything came up, bad weather rolled in during the late afternoon and looked like it wasn't going to lift anytime soon.

---

That evening they all gathered round on the settee, Gadget had turned the TV off (manually) and Monty was hoping to tell them of one of his adventures, when all of a sudden a female scream was heard outside.

"W...what was that?" Chip asked, his voice indicating slight nervousness to all non-telepaths.

"Perhaps it was the wind." Monty commented, equally nervous, the same scream was heard, followed by hammering on the door.

"Well, that wasn't the wind!" Gadget commented.

"No," Dale added, "That's someone at the door!" The same scream was heard followed by more desperate knocking.

"Help! Help!" Cried a female voice from outside.

"Gadget," Chip commanded, "Open the door."

"You're the tree-owner!" Gadget stated.

"Dale," Chip told his companion nervously, "You can answer it."

"Not me," He replied, "There's a horror movie on in five minutes..."

"You can't watch horror movies at a time like this!" Chip told him, all of a sudden there was silence, except for the pitter-patter of rain.

"It's stopped!" Monterrey commented. "Perhaps she's gone home."

"Don't be silly, Monty." Gadget told him. "She wouldn't pound on the door like that and then go home!"

"Maybe she's come to the wrong tree!" Dale suggested.

"Well, see if she has!" Chip told him, pushing him towards the door. They were just about all nervous, Gadget had left her telepathy off for the time being, Dale was chuntering about why he had to check, he opened the door.

"Oh!" He cried as an unconscious Tammy fell into his arms, he let her slide onto the floor as he trembled like a leaf. "Oh dear! Help! Help! Help!" He ran over to a makeshift telephone and picked up the receiver. "Police! Police! Police!"

"Shut up, you dummy!" Chip told him, putting the phone back on the hook. "The police don't deal with rodents!"

"Golly," Gadget commented, rushing to Tammy's side, "It's Tammy!"

"I'd better feel her heart." Monterrey suggested, Gadget pushed him away.

"Sorry Monty, that's a woman-to-woman job." Chip patted some damp cotton wool on her forehead while Gadget patted her paw; Tammy came to looking up at Chip.

"Oh, Chipper! Chipper! I've seen it! I've seen it." She cried before passing out again.

"What's she been watching?" Gadget asked.

"Nothing serious," Chip commented, "She's not got the same interests as Dale."

"Here she comes again!" Dale commented as Tammy regained consciousness.

"Oh, it was horrible." She said as Chip and Dale held her up while Monty got her a chair.

"Don't worry, Tammy," Gadget comforted her, "We'll help you."

"Could you tell us exactly what happened?" Chip asked her as he whipped out his to-scale notebook and pencil tip.

"Well," She began, "I've been to the pictures with Bink in the Odeon."

"'Been to pictures with little sister..." Chip muttered as he wrote it down, "...in city."

"Then I went home, when I suddenly remembered a letter I had to post, so I set off for the pillar box. And just as I got to the park entrance..."

"Were you insulted?" Chip asked.

"No." Tammy told him.

"Oh," Chip muttered, "We could've taken steps."

"I just got to the park entrance," Tammy continued, "When all of a sudden; galloping towards me was a hearse with no head!"

"A what?!?" Chip asked, bewildered.

"The driver had no head!" She told him. "There was a hearse with a headless horseman!" Chip pulled Dale to one side.

"Have you been going out with her?" He asked.

"No!" Dale said indefinitely.

"Well," Chip asked, "Why's she giving your sort of story?"

"I don't know!" Dale stated.

"It's true, I tell you." Tammy snapped at them. "I saw it!"

"Oh, Tammy." Gadget commented in sympathy. "Are you feeling any better?"

"Yes, thank you!" She answered.

"I'd better get the Rangermobile out and take her home." Chip commented.

"What, and leave us here alone?!?" Monterrey stated. "We'll all take her home!"

"What for?" Gadget asked. "Are you scared?"

"Of course not." Monterrey replied. "I'm just thinking about her reputation!"

---

The Rangermobile pulled up to the base of Tammy's home tree, Monterrey Jack got out first and offered to help Tammy out of her seat with a major bow involving his flying helmet. She gave Chip a kiss on the cheek.

"Night night, Chip." She said. "Thanks for the bumpy ride." She got out and scampered up the tree.

"Good night, Tammy." Chip called up to her.

"G'night." Monterrey followed suit.

"Good night!" Chip called up again, Monterrey made another bow then raised his helmet above his head, reminiscent of Napoleon.

"Good night!" He called.

"Come on, Chip," Gadget commented. "Let's go home." Chip began to pull off. "Wait a minute!" She cried. "Sir Walter Raleigh's not in!" And she pulled Monterrey back into the Rangermobile just as Chip began to put his foot down.

"It must be about one o'clock!" Chip commented wearily.

"I haven't been out this late since my uncle got married." Dale told them.

"Pardon, Dale?" Gadget asked in a confused tone.

"His second wife!" Dale replied, Gadget breathed a sigh of relief.

"'Ey," Monterrey spoke up, "I hope we don't meet that phantom hearse!"

"Oh, that's pure nonsense." Chip told them. "You can't have a headless driver! He wouldn't be able to pass his tests."

"But Tammy must've seen something that scared her." Gadget commented, Chip nodded in agreement.

"She probably saw Zipper through a looking glass!" Monterrey suggested.

"True," Gadget stated, "You go around believing every urban myth in…" She was cut off when Chip suddenly stopped; he looked white as a sheet. "What's wrong?" She asked. "Why did you just stop?" Chip nervously pointed across the park.

"Look." He squeaked. They all saw a rodent equivalent of a horse-drawn cart rolling along the path, there were flames coming from the back.

"It's the phantom 'earse!" Monterrey cried.

"Phantom hearse?!?" Gadget criticised. "It's an old-fashioned cart with it's tail-light on fire!"

"It's the phantom hearse, I assure you!" Dale exclaimed. "Those are phantom flames! Look at the driver's head!"

"What's wrong with his head?" Gadget asked.

"He ain't got one!" Dale answered.

"Don't be silly, Dale!" She commented. "He's probably got it tucked in!" All the other Rangers were stupefied. "Why are you so worried?" She asked them. "It's not coming this way!"

"That's just what it is doing!" Chip cried, this got Gadget disturbed now.

"Get on to the grass!" Gadget told Chip. "Let it go by!"

"After all that rain?!?" Chip complained, the hearse continued to bear down on them.

"It's going to go right through us!" Dale cried.

"I'm not having a hearse going through me!" Chip told him. "Hold on to your hats!" He put the Rangermobile into reverse and went at full throttle.

"We can get through those gates over there!" Gadget told them as they shot backwards into a seldom visited area of the park. "Phew, just made it." She commented as Chip swerved the Rangermobile through the winding pathways.

"Well, maybe you could've kept your eyes on where we were going," Chip suggested, "Instead of talking so much!"

"Well," Gadget commented, "We needn't go any further. We gave the flaming hearse the slip!" Chip pulled the Rangermobile up against a stone wall, but the hearse was now going through the very same gates.

"Hey, listen, listen." Dale told them meekly.

"What's up, Dale?" Chip asked.

"Hoofs!" He replied.

"Hooves?" Gadget said in a bewildering tone.

"Crikey!" Monterrey exclaimed. "It followed us up here!" The hearse came into view and entered something that a rodent would think of a garage, Gadget looked on curiously as the doors opened up and let the hearse in before closing again.

"Did you see where it went?" She asked the others, but the others were either keeping their eyes covered or were looking the other way.

"No!" Dale declared.

"Where did it go?" Chip asked.

"It…" Gadget started, but was slightly frustrated at seeing that Chip had pulled his fedora over his eyes while Dale and Monterrey Jack were looking towards the wall. "Well, it went in the garage! If you kept your eyes open you'd have seen where it went!" She then said something condescending directly at Chip.

"Yer mean it went straight through the doors?!?" Monterrey asked her.

"No," She replied, "The doors opened and let him in!"

"Well," Chip asked, "Who opened them?"

"Well, I don't know! I've been subduing my telepathy all evening!" She commented.

"Perhaps they're ghost doors!" Dale suggested before leaping behind the Rangermobile.

"Ghost doors!" Chip commented sarcastically. "I'll show you whether they're ghosts or not!" He gave Dale a kick under the tail, getting him up from behind the Rangermobile. As the Rangers went over to investigate Dale got a bit of static electricity up his tail, causing to yelp in shock.

Chip and Gadget attempted to pull the doors open but they wouldn't budge, so Chip knocked on one of them.

"Come on," He said, putting on his copper tone of voice, "Open up in the name of justice!" He knocked again and insisted that they were opened.

"Why are you standing there?" Gadget asked Dale and Monterrey Jack. "There's no reason to be afraid. Here," She suggested, bringing Chip into the huddle that was forming, "I think I know what to do." The doors began to open. "If two of us pull on one door and the other…" She was cut off as one of the doors pushed them all over, Chip took a peek.

"Where did it go?" Chip asked after seeing an empty space.

"Perhaps it went right through and out the other side." Dale suggested.

"Don't be silly, Dale." Gadget commented as they walked inside. "This is a solid wall!" They began to edge their way along the wall from the middle of the back towards the left side of the room.

"Do you know where we are?" Chip asked. "This used to be Plato's kennel!" Dale acknowledged this.

"Let's look him up and tell him!" He suggested.

"Tell him what?" Gadget asked.

"That we're in his kennel!" He replied.

"Oh, there's a bright idea!" Chip said sarcastically. "Let's examine these walls properly." Dale spotted an interesting object in the middle of the kennel, he went over and stuffed it under his shirt, and then he saw something on the back wall. "Chip, Gadget!" He called nervously.

"What's wrong?" Gadget asked.

"I think you should know," Dale continued as the other three joined him in the middle of the kennel, "There's only four of us, but there's five shadows on the wall!" Chip and Gadget stood up and looked at the wall; Gadget began to count from Chip's shadow to Dale's shadow.

"One, two, three, four…" Then Chip squeaked in alarm.

"You're right!" He told his bunkmate, "You're right, Dale! There's one other!"

"Yes, and I'll tell you something else!" Dale said in a fearful tone. "Our visitor's got no head!" They all felt unnerved now and turned around to see the 'headless' driver standing at the entrance to the kennel. They immediately dashed past him and into the Rangermobile; Monterrey Jack took the steering mechanism and drove the Rangermobile at full speed back to HQ.

---

As they rushed through the front door Gadget made for a cupboard to get a refreshing drink, Dale was right behind her. The makeshift phone was perpetually ringing.

"Maybe you'll believe it now you've seen it!" Dale commented.

"Sorry Dale," She replied as she poured herself a glass of orange juice, "But I'm sure there's a logical explanation for what we've seen! Answer that phone!"

"Not me!" Dale told her. "It might be the headless horseman!"

"Gee Willikers!" She exclaimed. "If he hasn't got a head, how can he talk into a phone?!?"

"I'll get it!" Chip announced, picking up the receiver. "Hello?" He listened for bit and indicated to the others to join him. "What can we do for you, Sparky?" He asked.

On the other end of the phone Sparky smirked and said. "Did you see a headless horseman last night?" He listened for Chip to reply affirmatively and said. "April Fool!"

Chip sighed annoyingly and told him. "It's not even April!"

"I know," Sparky answered, "But with a gag like that I couldn't wait that long!"

Chip replaced the receiver on the hook; he looked as though he'd been made a monkey out of.


End file.
